These popular Awadhi dishes have a fascinating history

Digging into Lucknow’s culinary past…

Tripping India? Then deep diving into dozens of delectable dishes is inevitable and predestined, even mandatory! And how could it not be…considering that the rich and diverse cuisine of the subcontinent has always held pride of place as one of the most evolved in world gastronomy. Seek curries and spice and all things nice across the length and breadth of the country. But when it comes to delicate flavours, refined techniques and palate perfection…bookmark Awadhi cuisine.

Quick taste of history first. Decline of the Mughal empire in the early 18th-century sees Nawab (governor) Asaf-Ud-Daula seizing power and moving the capital from Faizabad to Lucknow. Drum roll for Renaissance. Prose, poetry, art, crafts, culture and cuisine flourish. Semi-royal head chefs with army-sized kitchens start fashioning cooking as an art form. Techniques of char-grilling, dum pukht (slow cooking over low flame), and balancing aromatic with fiery spices, develop. Intense culinary rivalry creates an exquisitely refined food culture. Bottom line: tempting takeaways for all times to come…including chaat, puri, kachori, jalebi, rabdi, lassi, kebabs, kormas, biryanis and flat breads. So, stand by for a sensory explosion of the epicurean kind…because we’re Lucknow bound. With my personal crackdown of the six most iconic, edible symbols of a city synonymous with etiquette, grace and elegance. Tummy rumbles guaranteed…

The delectable Galawati

Know the dish: Disc-shaped, small meat patties made by adding a rich paste of papaya, yoghurt and gram flour to minced meat and blending with delicate spices like black pepper, cardamom and star anise. Shallow-fried on a large cast-iron girdle heated by smouldering charcoal. No biting or chewing needed. Its melting-soft… true to its name, ‘galawati’. And that smoky aftertaste…divine!

Dig into the lineage: The original kebabs of Turkey have come a long way from when soldiers chargrilled barbecued meat chunks on sword skewers over open fires. Kebabs were introduced to India through Awadh with the first Persian Nawab, Sadat Ali Khan. They refined into their present form under Nawab Asad-ud-Daula,when the “Renaissance of cuisine” encouraged royal chefs to innovate each other out of the game.

Sample the legendary: The Galawati was first made for an ageing, toothless Nawab by a one-armed (tunday) chef Haji Murad Ali. The famed Tunday kebab shop in the old quarters of Aminabad is his legacy from the late 17th-century. Hordes still gather at its various outlets everyday, relishing the closely-guarded secret family recipe. 160 different spices, they say…whoa!

The luscious Sheermal

Know the dish: A saffron-flavoured, sweet flatbread (‘sheer’ means milk and ‘maal’ means rich food). Makes a perfect complement to the delicate stews and kebabs of the region. No ordinary accompaniment to scoop up gravy or wrap kebabs, this. The deal is enjoy its chewiness separately and relish the soft sweetness for itself…alone. The ghee in the dough makes it re-heatable for breakfast, much like the parantha. Buy and hoard, if once is not enough.

Dig into the lineage: Another Persian import, scream the Sheermal’s foreign ingredients like crushed nuts, cardamon and saffron. Thankfully, no longer reserved for the upper echelons of society, as it used to be during the Awadh aristocracy days.

Sample the legendary: Bread it out with a journey down Sheermal Gali for the widest variety…basic to super-sized (Baqarkhani) to thinnest (Hazri Sheermal) to richest (Zafrani). Recommended pitstop: Ali Hussain Sheermal (oldest and best).

The delicate Biryani

Know the dish: Rice dish cooked in seasoned broth with vegetables or meat, much like pilaf, risotto, paella or jambalaya. Awadhi Biryani is a ‘pukki’ biryani, where meat and rice are cooked separately then layered in a copper vessel for the finish. Meat stock and slow cooking with spices for about two hours makes it moist, tender and delicately flavoured.

Dig into the lineage: Persian? Naturally! Biryani is derived from the word ‘birian’, which means ‘fried before cooking’. Its Indian origins can be traced to the 14th century, when Turco-Mongol conqueror, Taimur Lang landed in India. An elementary version of ‘biryani’ was already part of his army’s diet then. Another popular legend (from 300 years after), connects biryani to Shah Jahan’s queen Mumtaz Mahal, on whose orders a wholesome meal blending meat and rice was created for the the impoverished Mughal army.

Sample the legendary: Pay homage to the best biryani at Wahid at Aminabad. Noteworthy feature? Rice and spices showcasing meat in all its purity. Suggested delicacy: Chicken biryani with potli masala, a pouch of 55 masalas used to soften the smell of meat.

The heavenly Kulfi

Know the dish: Indian version of ice cream made with thickened milk, sugar, saffron and pistachios. Served on a stick or in slices in a plate.

Dig into the lineage: The name comes from a Persian word qulfi; meaning a covered cup. Can be traced back to 16th-century roots, when Mughals added pistachios, green cardamoms, saffron to an existing Indian condensed milk dessert (kheer). They packed it into individual metal cone cups and froze it in large ice containers using a slurry mixture of ice and salt for transporting from Himalayas through the desert to warmer parts of the empire.

Sample the legendary: Prakash Ki Kulfi in Aminanad, just steps away from Tunday Kabab shop. Prakash Chandra Arora’s 1965 venture, now managed by his family, uses its own lusciousness formula…including milk boiled for three to four hours. Gorge on the iced delight doused in rose syrup, dug out straight from the ice bucket. With or without falooda (silky vermicelli noodles) topping.

Dig into the lineage: Chaat originated in the royal kitchen of the great emperor Shah Jahan, when he fell ill. The Shahi Hakim (emperor’s special doctor) advised him to strengthen immunity by consuming spicy and light food. It is believed that chaat was then introduced in the city to counter the effects of unpalatable river water. Great for the tongue, even better for the tummy!

Sample the legendary: Royal Cafe in Hazratganj has everything drool-worthy under one roof. Sights, aromas, flavours to whet any appetite. Don’t even consider giving this one a miss.

The all-time favorite Samosa

Know the dish: Fried pocket of soft potatoes, peas and green chillies. Eaten with much love all across the country with tea as an evening snack. Piping hot.

Dig into the lineage: The physical and phonetic resemblance to the Egyptian samsa is no coincidence…that’s the ancestry speaking. A name derived from the pyramids of Central Asia, these palm-sized triangles are hot sellers all over the East…and that’s where they crossed into India with the Mughals. 14th-century traveller, Ibn Battuta, refers to a royal delicacy in the court of Muhammad bin Tughlaq, called sambusak made with minced meat, walnuts, pistachios, almonds, and spices. It was in the state of Uttar Pradesh that the samosa finally morphed into its potato-pea vegetarian avatar. And made home in the hearts of India for eternity.

Sample the legendary: Samosa dreams come to life at Lucknow’s most famous tea corner, Sharma Tea Corner. Innovation rears its head here with unusual round- shaped samosas. Pair with bun maska (buns lathered with home-made white butter). And gulp down with strong, cardamom flavoured chai in a rustic-styled kullad (baked clay cup).

When you’re done for the day, consider the ‘foreign import’ influence common to each of these iconic Awadhi eats. Sculpted with local ingredients, moulded to local taste and served in local style. And stamped Indian. Quintessentially. And unquestionably.

46 thoughts on “These popular Awadhi dishes have a fascinating history”

Wow! The only thing I have tried in this list are the Samosas. And I LOVE them. It’s what we call “comfort food!” My father in law is from India and my husband doesn’t like Indian food. But, I’m quite sure he hasn’t tasted what you list. I think that he believes it is all curry based. Your descriptions bring the food to life. What a fun post.

I LOVE AVADHI FOOD 😀 Everytime I go to Lucknow, despite the fact that I dislike everything else about the city I never miss taking a walk around Aminabad to enjoy these delicacy. I am so possessive about the place that I have never written about it 😀

Oh, that looks good! I love to try new things on the way. The food really looks really delicious and my stomach growls now. I should look for an Indian restaurant that o delicious food prepared … or drive to India.

My husband and I recently discovered how good Indian food is. We mostly stick to naan and different curry dishes but now I’m dying to try Chaat. I love the history you wrote behind each dish. It helps create a better appreciation for them. We definitely need to add Lucknow to our travel bucket list!

Count me in for the chaat and the kulfi and.. well it all looks so delicious. Being gluten free I usually have pretty good luck with Indian food. I wonder if the sheermal is made with wheat flour or lentil flour? So interested to learn of the Persian influence.

It’s amazing how much you can learn about history and cultures just from food – fascinating post! I’m only familiar with biryani and samosas, but I found some new foods here that I want to try. I’ve never seen chaat here in the US but I’m determined to find it! (or just travel to India to eat it haha)

I have bookmarked this post — LOVE the history behind the creation and development of each dish!! I have had sheermal but had no idea what it was until reading this … deliciously sweet bread. And I first had Chaat a decade or so ago with a friend, and fell absolutely in love, but until reading this did not fully appreciate all the ingredients nor the history behind its creation. Love love love this post!!!

I’m not sure if I’ve actually eaten Awadhi food, even though I’ve been to India several times. The dishes look tempting and I love how you weave in a bit of history too. The Tunday kebab shop in the old quarters of Aminabad looks like a classic and authentic place to eat.

I must start by admitting I am a pretty wimpy eater. I don’t like most spices or curry. We found eating a bit tough in India. But bbq meats and kabobs were definitely on our plates. I am sorry we did not get to try biryani. It all looks so good. And wish I would eat more adventurously.

This post came at a good time, I’m in Dharamsala so not far from Lucknow! I love your history lesson through food, I’ve eaten some of these dishes and curious about the background. Now I need to try Chaat for the first time!

Oh my God, this post just made me hungry. I absolutely LOVE the galawati kebab from Tunday Kebab, it is heavenly. I honestly did not know it was classified as Awadhi cuisine so it is quite interesting to read the history and evolution of the different popular Indian dishes. My home town is Delhi so you get some really good Awadhi cuisine there 🙂

Reading this post as a Persian is so interesting. I didn’t know we had influence in Indian dishes. Galawati looks like Iranian kotlet. The Ice cream looks exactly as Persian Ice Cream, I didn’t know that India has the same

Thanks for the cool story. I loved reading more fascinating facts about my favorite cuisine! I couldn’t quit looking at the picture of the Tokri chaat. Holy goodness, that is a plethora of delicious tastes and the photo is so Instagram-worthy. 😉

Just delighted to read this post!
I have never been able to spend time in Lucknow but brought back some memories of Old Delhi. I think all the great cities of the plains have something in common. I’m glad that you explored the history of each item, something people tend to ignore nowadays. I always think the food gets better when you know the stories associated with them.

I love learning about food to try in different regions and I hope I get to experience this on my first visit to India. But you really have looked into the history of these foods and cant believe there is a story behind each one of them. Great read. 🙂